"The past is good, because without it, I wouldn't have anywhere to keep my memories."- Kagdar Menderwood of Arin

All Players in an Outland campaign are required to create a fairly detailed background for their characters. Adventures in Outland place quite a bit of importance upon home and family life - thus, it is important to know just what that life was like. Players can create this information or, if they prefer, roll on the following tables to determine family status. All PCs begin as the children (or adopted children) of local townsfolk.

Table 1: Parental Status

1d100 Roll

Parental Status

01-50

Father and Mother both alive

51-60

Father alive, Mother deceased

61-70

Father alive, Mother deceased, Father remarried

71-80

Father deceased, Mother alive

81-90

Father deceased, Mother alive, Mother remarried

91-100

Father and mother deceased, adoptive parents*

* For adoptive parents, roll again on this table to decide status, ignoring results of 95 or greater.

Table 2: Sibling Status

1d100 Roll

Sibling Status

01-10

Only child

11-40

1d4 siblings

41-60

1d4+2 siblings

61-90

2d4 siblings

91-100

1d6+4 siblings

Roll randomly to determine sibling gender.

Table 3: Father's Employment *

1d100 Roll

Father's Employment**

01-15

Butcher

16-30

Potter

31-45

Baker

46-60

Farmer

61-70

Cobbler

71-79

Blacksmith

80-89

Sage

90-95

Border Warden

96-100

Knight of the Guardian Hawk

* If results from Table 1 indicate father is deceased and yet owned a business, this business has been run by the mother, run by a male relation of the mother, or run by an older brother of the character.
** If more than one character rolls the same result, then they are siblings.

Butcher: Makes his living butchering cattle, pigs, chickens, etc. from local farms. Sells his produce mainly in town, but does ship some smoked meats to Wariness Keep. A member of the middle class, he earns a fairly decent living.
Potter: A nearby rich deposit of red clay has allowed this man to gain some fame as a potter of note. His clay pots and bowls are used throughout the village, and even as far away as Stronghold itself. Five years ago, the Grand Duchess Linia of Stronghold (passing through Arin on her way to visit her husband at Wariness Keep) absolutely fell in love with these designs, and gave the Potter her royal seal (the potter now can claim "by appointment of Grand Duchess Linia").
Baker: This man is a baker. He earns a decent living, but nothing special.
Farmer: This man is a farmer, but somewhat better off than most others. His farms are profitable enough for him to afford to live here in town. He has numerous farm hands, but still must see to the day-to-day running of his holdings personally.
Cobbler: A maker of shoes and boots. Moderately successful, but still considered lower-middle class.
Blacksmith: This man is famed throughout Outland for his talents. All the villagers know that he could set up shop in Stronghold if he wished. However, the blacksmith loves Arin - he was born here, and has lived his own life here. As he is sometimes fond of saying "Stronghold be fine for city types, but I'm just a village blacksmith". The blacksmith earns a very good living, and is considered upper-middle class.
Sage: The character's father is a sage, specializing in one of the following areas (DM's choice): botany, genealogy of Arin, foreign languages (knows 1d3 tongues from Beyond), mathematics or medicine. The sage is quite well off, and is considered upper class.
Border Warden: Of all the people of Outland, few are more respected than the Border Wardens. Unfortunately, the Warden's job requires him to travel, so he is rarely home (1d6 days out of any given month). The job pays well, and the Warden has the respect of the entire town. The Warden is definitely upper class.
Knight of the Guardian Hawk: This man is a Knight stationed at Wariness Keep. If there is anyone more respected than a Border Warden, it is a Knight of the Hawk. This man is home one week out of every month, and stationed at the keep for the other three. This job pays very well, and the man is considered upper class.

Once the Player has rolled on these tables, he has the basic information necessary to create his character's history. The Player is free to write the history he wants, realizing of course the the DM will edit and modify it as appropriate, to make it fit both the campaign and with other players.